Swansea City host first Iftar event at the Swansea.com Stadium
Swansea City hosted its first Iftar event at the Swansea.com Stadium last month with more than 100 people in attendance.
The event was organised in collaboration with Show Racism the Red Card (SRtRC) and the Muslim Council of Wales, and marked Ramadan – the Islamic month of fasting – which began on March 22 and will end on Friday April 21.
The Iftar event welcomed Muslims observing Ramadan and non-Muslims to the stadium, and provided an opportunity for everyone to break their fast together.
Imam Souhib El Sharif, from the Muslim Council of Wales, opened the event before further guest speakers from SRtRC, the Football Association of Wales, the Ethnic Minorities and Youth Support Team Wales (EYST), the Welsh Syrian society, Swansea City AFC Foundation and the club addressed the group.
Guests then broke fast gathered together before moving to pray at the side of the Swansea.com Stadium pitch. The group then returned to the stadium’s Morfa Lounge to enjoy a meal provided by the club.
Swansea City head coach Russell Martin also spoke at the event, while players Matty Sorinola and Cameron Congreve were in attendance to show their support.
Dean Pymble, Show Racism the Red Card Wales campaign manager, said: “The aim of the event was community cohesion and to understand what different organisations can do for people from the community. It was about bringing Muslim and non-Muslim people together to discuss their differences, learn more about the month of Ramadan and also break down some misconceptions.
“Show Racism the Red Card’s aim is to break down barriers across society by educating people. It’s about providing a welcoming platform of inclusion as well as providing Muslim people with the chance to celebrate their religion.
“We want people to come to games and be their authentic selves and we want people to see Swansea City as a space for everybody, no matter your faith. Events like this bring Muslim people to the stadium by saying this is a space for you, we want you here and we welcome you.
“The next step is to make people feel welcome all year round whether that be coming to matches, engaging with Foundation projects or working at the club. We want all communities to feel that football stadiums are a space for them.”
For Helal Uddin, a speaker at the event and representative of EYST, the evening was an important first step for the club.
A lifelong Swansea fan, Helal has memories of attending games in the early 1990s and, on occasions, hearing racist songs being sung from the terraces.
Looking back, he’s not sure the people singing understood what they were saying, and he always felt very welcome in the football family.
It was that feeling of acceptance which gave him hope; it was the songs which made him realise things needed to change.
“Those negatives have helped me become the person I am today,” he explained.
“People think it was all bad, but actually I was learning about what happened in the past and improving things. I feel like I had an opportunity to make changes.”
Fast forward 30 years and the club has moved home to the Swansea.com Stadium and hosting an Iftar event. Despite his ultimately hopeful outlook as a child on the terraces, it was a step he didn’t really think would happen.
“It means a lot to be here,” he added.
“I remember bringing my kids here when they were young. I remember coming to all the home games when we played in Europe, in the Premier League, winning the Capital One Cup. All of that was emotional.
“This is my home, this is my team, Swansea is my team. And I think this club is in a lot of people’s hearts but some people may not have the confidence to break that barrier and come to the stadium to watch a game. A lot of the time a previous experience of racism plays a part.
“It’s important to break that barrier, and what Swansea City are doing with this event is so beautiful. It’s a step forward. we’re not there yet, but taking one step towards the future is important.”
The ‘first step’ message was something which head of fan engagement Catherine Thomas was also keen to reiterate.
“The stadium is only a stone’s throw away from a very large Muslim community in Swansea and we felt we needed to reach out and show how inclusive we are a club, but this isn’t just a tick box,” she said.
“In recent weeks we have signed up to the Muslim charter and we have recently introduced a prayer room at the stadium, which is great and the next step after that is awareness training for staff so that they have respect and understanding of what coming to football means to different people.
“So this is our first step, but now we need to build on this and work with the Muslim community and other communities to make ourselves more inclusive. We never want to stop, we will always keep asking the questions what more can we do?”